The present disclosure relates generally to the field of acoustic logging.
Certain earth formations exhibit a property called “anisotropy”, wherein the velocity of acoustic waves polarized in one direction may be somewhat different than the velocity of acoustic waves polarized in a different direction within the same earth formation. Anisotropy may arise from intrinsic structural properties, such as grain alignment, crystallization, aligned fractures, or from unequal stresses within the formation. Anisotropy is particularly of interest in the measurement of the velocity of shear/flexural waves propagating in the earth formations. Shear or S waves are often called transverse waves because the particle motion is in a direction “transverse”, or perpendicular, to the direction that the wave is traveling.
Acoustic waves travel fastest when the direction of particle motion polarization direction is aligned with the material's stiffest direction. If the formation is anisotropic, meaning that there is one direction that is stiffer than another, then the component of particle motion aligned in the stiff direction travels faster than the wave component aligned in the other, more compliant, direction in the same plane. In the case of 2-dimensional anisotropy, a shear wave induced into an anisotropic formation splits into two components, one polarized along the formation's stiff (or fast) direction, and the other polarized along the formation's compliant (or slow) direction. Generally, the orientation of these two polarizations is substantially orthogonal (components which are at a 90° angle relative to each other). The fast wave is polarized along the direction parallel to the fracture strike and a slow wave in the direction perpendicular to it.
A significant number of hydrocarbon reservoirs comprise fractured rocks wherein the fracture porosity makes up a large portion of the fluid-filled space. In addition, the fractures also contribute significantly to the permeability of the reservoir. Identification of the direction and extent of fracturing is important in reservoir development for at least two reasons.
One reason for identification of fracture direction is that such a knowledge makes it possible to drill deviated or horizontal boreholes with an axis that is preferably normal to the plane of the fractures. In a rock that otherwise has low permeability and porosity, a well drilled in the preferred direction will intersect a large number of fractures and thus have a higher flow rate than a well that is drilled parallel to the fractures. Knowledge of the extent of fracturing also helps in making estimates of the potential recovery rates in a reservoir and in enhancing the production from the reservoir.